


Of Teren and Kéithien

by Lunarium



Series: Sheith New Years 2019 [5]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: M/M, Monsters & Mana (Voltron), Sheith New Years, Silmarillion AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-06
Updated: 2019-01-06
Packaged: 2019-10-05 03:18:12
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,824
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17317055
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lunarium/pseuds/Lunarium
Summary: The Silmarillion’s greatest love story, starring Voltron’s own famous lovers.Based on the tale of “Of Beren and Lúthien".





	Of Teren and Kéithien

**Author's Note:**

> For Sheith New Years, Day 5: Free Day. I decided to go for a Silmarillion AU. Beginning paragraph is lifted straight from “Of Beren and Lúthien” (save for the switching of names), hence why it’s all in italics. there are some similar phrasing here and there, done on purpose to assume the loremaster is just copy-pasting Shiro and Keith into the story. 
> 
> Artwork by [KeithBDay on Twitter](https://twitter.com/keithbday/status/1006008838900703233)! <3 
> 
> Teren is Shiro and Kéithien is Keith. You’ll recognize the others either from the M&M episode or from their name (a couple of them didn’t change at all from the show). Maybe it's because of all the Silm and VLD name smushing involved, but I feel this is the weirdest thing I ever wrote. XD

_Among the tales of sorrow and of ruin that came down to us from the darkness of those days there are yet some in which amid weeping there is joy and under the shadow of death light that endures. And of these histories most fair still in the ears of the Elves is the tale of Teren and Kéithien._

The vast forests of Feyvoriath rose southward into mountainous moors, and in the east, the lake of Tarn Atlas stood, where which none had ever dwelt. The waters were deemed in reverence, for Krolian herself had hallowed them, and it was there Tarahir and his twelve companions, one of which was Tarahir’s son Teren, withdrew after a long and perilous battle with the dark lord Zarkonth. 

Under the protection of Krolian’s magic, Zarkonth could not discover their hideout, yet he commanded Haggar to seek them, and for many long moons she sought for the band of men in vain. 

The men lived steadfast against the tyranny of Zarkonth, until it came to pass that the treachery of Samlim, lured by a vision of his dead wife Colleniel sent by Haggar, was ensnared by the witch, and in her lair he was tortured until he broke and gave up to Zarkonth the location to the hideout. 

In that time, Teren had been away on a quest by his father, but his dreams had become plagued with terrible images, and in fear he rode back to Tarn Atlas. Seeing the wreckage, he wept bitterly and swore revenge for Samlim’s treachery. 

Teren took his father’s ring, the sole remnant of his family heirloom, and wandered into the wilderness. It was said for four long wretched months he roamed, and terrible was the southward journey. By the time he wandered in the forests of Mamoriath, he had grown weary and grey, but the forest was alive with summer, and it was in the woods of Bladoreth he came upon Kéithien, son of Krolian, and in his enchantment Teren was departed from his pain, for Kéithien was the most beautiful of all the Children of the Space Goddess. 

Red was his raiment like the spells he sang into the woods, but his eyes shone dark violet like storms, his hair was dark as the shadows of the night. The light sparkled in the leaves up above his head, casting a glow upon his face for a moment, and then he was gone. 

Startled by his sudden disappearance, Teren ran into the glade, calling out his name, “Thunderstorm!” for he did not know his true name. Then there came upon a laugh behind his back, and turning around he saw him once more. And under the canopy of light of the Bladoreth they shared their first kiss. 

In the following years, Teren would return to the woods to watch Kéithien sing his mighty enchanting songs, and together they would stroll through the glade, basking in each other’s company. 

Then it came to pass that Kéithien brought Teren to the caves of Marmoriath, where Teren was to meet King Kolivan to ask for his lad-love’s hand in marriage. But the king refused, on account that Teren was mortal. Presenting him with his father’s ring would not persuade him. 

Thrice Teren requested, and on the third request, Kolivan finally changed his answer. 

“Only should you return with one the Quintmarils on the Iron Crown of Zarkonth shall then I give over Kéithien’s hand to you.”

For the Quintmarils, five in number, forged by the great elven smith Alfëanor far in the Eastern realms of Yalayun, had become possessed by the dark lord. To retrieve one was impossible, but Teren had set out, eager to please the mighty Galra king. 

King Kolivan had sent one of his men, Ulaz, to accompany Teren, but they were soon captured by Zarkonth’s witch Haggar, who had taken them to the towers of Tol-in-Naxhoth where they were tortured. At last when she had tired of interrogating them, the witch had sent her terrible robeasts to tear the men, but Ulaz had shielded Teren from the beasts and fought them one by one. But he was grievously wounded, and in Teren’s arms he drew his final breath. 

His bitter tears echoed in the chambers of the prisons and were picked up by tiny nightingales who then carried the message to Kéithien, back in Marmoriath. But forbidden to leave his mother’s safe haven, he sang in the forest until there approached a giant cosmic wolf called Kosmo, whose eyes shown like the heavens. Then Kéithien mounted Kosmo, and the wolf disappeared from sight, a moment later, and they had appeared again on the out reaches of Marmoriath, away from Krolian’s reach. They sped through the grey lands towards Tol-in-Naxhoth. 

When he saw the tower up ahead, Kéithien began his song, and the doors of the prison crumbled and dissolved, and Teren crawled through the rubble, reaching out for Kéithien’s hand. Then they buried Ulaz and Kéithien healed Teren’s wounds. 

“Your journey will not be in vain,” Kéithien spoke. “Come with me.” 

Together on Kosmo, they came to Zarkonth’s lair. Kéithien’s song put the entire court of Zarkonth to sleep, and together they proceeded inside. With the dark lord in deep slumber, Teren approached and cut off one Quintmaril from the crown. For a moment a thought had seized him to slay the dark lord then and now, but sensing the thought, Kéithien stopped him. 

“He is too powerful,” Kéithien said. “Your sword will not cut him even if it was blazing with the flames of Narn Voltron. We must make haste.” 

But as they crossed the lands towards Marmoriath, Zarkonth awoke, and realizing what had taken place, in his rage he sent his most terrible beast after them. And so it was that on the edge of Marmoriath that the werewolf Coranroth caught up with Teren and Kéithien. Kosmo fought him off but became terribly wounded. Then Teren raised the Quintmaril in hopes its radiance would avert the beast, but he was mistaken. The Coranroth bit off his hand; but the Quintmaril burned in his belly, and in an orange flash the beast ran rampant in Marmoriath. 

His terrible howls echoed in the once fair forest. As Teren lay bleeding, Kéithien wept and sang a song to the gods for mercy, and it was then that they were rescued by eagles, sent by the mystical archer of Valayun, Melenor. Healed for the second time, Teren and Kéithien were met by the archer and her company, who have heard the howls of the mad werewolf, and they set out to chase down the Coranroth. Among them were Meklavar the dwarf, Block the wizard apprentice of Krolian, and Pike the thief. 

With Pike’s stealth, he located Coranroth near in the woods of Bladoreth where Teren had seen Kéithien; Block used his magic to keep the beast confided in the glade, and the archer Melenor fell him with an arrow. Meklavar cleaved open his belly, and Teren reached in to grab the Quintmaril, but not before the beast dug his claws into Teren’s neck and chest, piercing his heart. 

Mortally wounded, Teren passed the Quintmaril to Melenor, who could only touch such an sacred gem when it was wrapped in heavy cloth, and then he laid down and died in Kéithien’s arms. 

Overcome with grief, Kéithien took his lover’s sword and pierced his own heart. 

In the Halls of Awaiting, Kéithien begged the Space Goddess to see his beloved. But he was refused. He was of half-Galran blood, but even that would mean he was immortal and his fate as such was unlike that of mortal men. But then Kéithien sang his final song, long and mournful and full of so much sorrow that it moved the Space Goddess to mercy. 

She granted Kéithien one wish: both himself and Teren were restored to life and would live the rest of their days together, but when they eventually died they would succumb to the fate of Men and go beyond the walls of Arda, beyond where no Galran soul had traveled, to a place unknown to any man.

___

“And then…what of us?” Hunk said.

“Yeah!” Lance added. “We come in right at the end and are never heard of again!” 

Shiro studied his card. “I don’t know if I’m any good at this. I think my clone was better—” 

“—no, trust me, he wasn’t!” Hunk quickly interjected. 

“I just wish there was more for my character to do,” Pidge whined. “I mean, Meklavar can fit right into Tolkien’s vision! Maybe not with that name…no, wait, actually, Tolkien never fully developed the dwarven languages so you don’t know. Maybe Meklavar is a Broadbeam or an Ironfist! Yeah, I’d like to be an Ironfist!” 

Coran cleared his throat. “Now you all just settle down! You had your fun on the Castle a while back! Shiro—our Shiro—and Keith didn’t get a chance to play yet, and we’re celebrating their honeymoon, so I thought it’d be a little fun to do it in this manner. _And_ it was a special. Thank you for that book, by the way, Keith. It’s really inspiring!” 

“Well, _I_ thought it was very sweet and romantic,” Allura said, who was leaning on the table the whole time with her face settled on her hands in rapt attention. “I’d like to read this book!” 

“ _The Silmarillion_ was one of my favorites growing up,” Keith said with a shrug. “The beginning is all about space. There’s so much worldbuilding and history Tolkien crammed into three hundred pages—” 

“—Boring!” Lance called out through his hands. 

“Oh, you shut it!” 

“Hey, if it weren’t for me, Shiro would never have spotted and killed Coran!” 

Pidge sniggered. “That sounds so bad when you put it that way!” 

“I’m just saying, we could have played any other story from this stupid book and if Keith really wanted to woo Shiro he could have just rolled for seduction!” 

Allura sighed. “Lance, it’s okay. The story was for them. I thought it was sweet! I want to read _The Silmarillion_!” 

“Yeah,” Keith snorted. “The rest of the book is nothing but tragedy. You want to play as Túrin Turambar?” 

“Why not?” Lance challenged. 

“Great! You fall in love with your sister and kill yourself at the end.” 

Laughter erupted throughout the table. 

“Well, I suppose we could always look into this other Monsters & Mana special I got here: _Gatchaman_ edition.” Coran pulled on his mustache as he glanced through the book. “I never got the chance to try this one out. Supposedly your characters are all different kinds of birds! I think?” 

“Birds?” Keith said. His eyebrows shot up as he glanced up at Shiro. “You mean, actual birds? We can play as penguins raising an egg together?” 

“Oh, for Pete’s—”

“ _Please!_ ” Hunk groaned. “One does not simply play Monsters and Mana with Keith and Shiro!”

**Author's Note:**

> Last last is an LOTR infamous meme (which wasn’t even in the book! XD) 
> 
> As an aside, Tolkien wrote this story because he was deeply in love with Edith, the woman who became his wife. He literally made a character based on her and then wrote one of the most memorable chapters of “The Silmarillion”. He’s such a dork and I love him. His birthday just recently passed so this is a sort of belated dedicated to The Professor. *raised a glass* 
> 
> There's probably a lot of typos on this. Do forgive me. <3


End file.
